Bottle Rack

ABSTRACT

A bottle rack including a support member; through-holes formed through the support member; sets of support rods extending horizontally through the through-holes wherein a portion of the support rods extend a distance outward from opposing faces of the support member, wherein each set of support rods include two horizontally adjacent support rods. A method of installing a bottle rack including mounting a support member on or to a mounting surface, the support member including through-holes; and attaching sets of support rods, including two horizontally adjacent support rods, to the support member via the through-holes such that the support rods extend horizontally through the through-holes such that a portion of the support rods extend a distance outward from opposing faces of the support member. A kit including a support member; and sets of support rods, wherein each set of support rods include two horizontally adjacent support rods.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority to and incorporates herein by reference related U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62/533,902 filed on Jul. 18, 2017.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The presently disclosed subject matter relates generally to bottle racks, and more particularly to a configurable bottle storage rack and method.

BACKGROUND

Conventionally, bottle racks, such as wine racks are used in wine cellars or other wine storage areas to store numerous bottles of wine. Conventional wine racks may include, for example, a grid of generally rectangular cavities stacked upon and next to each other. Each rectangular cavity is typically formed by pairs of parallel wood supports held in position by front and rear frame structures. Bottles of wine are stored within the rectangular cavities. Accordingly, these wine racks are generally solidly built wooden structures, and the cavities are capable of storing one or more bottles of wine vertically stacked on top of each other. However, there may be certain drawbacks to conventional wine racks. For example, the closed nature of the storage cavities prevents air circulation around the individual bottles. Further, conventional wine racks provide inadequate measures for securing the wine bottles in the event the rack is bumped, jostled, or otherwise moved.

Additionally, conventional wine racks are typically configured such that the user places a bottle of wine longitudinally within one of the rectangular cavities. Accordingly, when the rack is full of wine bottles, only the corked ends of the wine bottles are generally visible while the labels on the wine bottles are not generally visible. Consequently, viewing the wine bottle labels is often difficult.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In one embodiment, the invention provides a bottle rack. The bottle rack may include a support member; through-holes formed through the support member; and sets of support rods extending horizontally through the through-holes such that a portion of the support rods extend a distance outward from opposing faces of the support member, and wherein each set of support rods include two horizontally adjacent support rods. The bottle rack may further include at least one mounting plate configurable to secure the support member to at least one mounting surface. The at least one mounting surface may include at least one of a floor, a ceiling, a wall, and a countertop. The through-holes may be of a diameter substantial equal to or slightly greater than a diameter of the support rods. The diameter of the through-holes may be configured to hold the support rods inserted therethrough in place via a friction fit. The on-center spacing between the two adjacent support rods of a set of support rods may be configured to support a standard wine bottle. The on-center spacing between the two support rods of a set of support rods may be about 2⅜ inches. The on-center spacing between neighboring support rods of adjacent sets of support rods may be about 1.5 inches. The through-holes may be configured in one or more of rows and columns. The on-center distance between vertically adjacent rows of support rods may be about 5 inches. The at least one mounting plate may be attached to at least one end of the support member. The mounting plate may be configured to secure the support member in a vertical orientation.

In another embodiment, the invention provides a method of installing a bottle rack. The method may include mounting a support member on or to a mounting surface, the support member including through-holes formed therethrough; and attaching sets of support rods having two horizontally adjacent support rods, to the support member via the through-holes such that the support rods extend horizontally through the through-holes such that a portion of the support rods extend a distance outward from opposing faces of the support member. The support member may be mounted to the mounting surface via a mounting plate.

In yet another embodiment, the invention provides a kit. The kit may include a support member; and sets of support rods, wherein each set of support rods includes two horizontally adjacent support rods. The kit may further include a mounting plate. The support member may include a number of through-holes formed therethrough, the through-holes having a diameter sized to accommodate the support rods. The support rods of the sets of support rods may be of a length such that when positioned in the through-holes a portion thereof extends outward from each opposing face of the support member. The support rods that extend outward from each opposing face of the support member is of a sufficient length to support a standard wine bottle in a horizontal position thereon.

Certain aspects of the subject matter of the invention having been stated hereinabove, which are addressed in whole or in part by the disclosed subject matter, other aspects will become evident as the description proceeds when taken in connection with the accompanying Examples and Drawings as best described herein below

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Having thus described the presently disclosed subject matter in general terms, reference will now be made to the accompanying Drawings, which are not necessarily drawn to scale, and wherein:

FIG. 1, FIG. 2, FIG. 3, and FIG. 4 illustrate a perspective view, a front view, a side view, and a cross-sectional view, respectively, of an example of the presently disclosed configurable bottle rack according to a first configuration;

FIG. 5, FIG. 6, and FIG. 7 illustrate a perspective view, a front view, and a side view, respectively, of the configurable bottle rack shown in FIG. 1, FIG. 2, FIG. 3, and FIG. 4 holding bottles;

FIG. 8, FIG. 9, and FIG. 10 illustrate a perspective view, a front view, and a side view, respectively, of an example of the presently disclosed configurable bottle rack according to a second configuration;

FIG. 11, FIG. 12 and FIG. 13 illustrate a perspective view, a front view, and a side view, respectively, of the configurable bottle rack shown in FIG. 8, FIG. 9, and FIG. 10 holding bottles;

FIG. 14, FIG. 15 and FIG. 16 illustrate a perspective view, a front view, and a side view, respectively, of an example of the presently disclosed configurable bottle rack according to a third configuration;

FIG. 17, FIG. 18 and FIG. 19 illustrate a perspective view, a front view, and a side view, respectively, of the configurable wine rack shown FIG. 14, FIG. 15 and FIG. 16 holding bottles;

FIG. 20 illustrates a perspective view of the presently disclosed configurable bottle rack and showing a cutaway view; and

FIG. 21 shows a photo of an example of a mounting plate of the presently disclosed configurable bottle rack.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The presently disclosed subject matter now will be described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying Drawings, in which some, but not all embodiments of the presently disclosed subject matter are shown. Like numbers refer to like elements throughout. The presently disclosed subject matter may be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein; rather, these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will satisfy applicable legal requirements. Indeed, many modifications and other embodiments of the presently disclosed subject matter set forth herein will come to mind to one skilled in the art to which the presently disclosed subject matter pertains having the benefit of the teachings presented in the foregoing descriptions and the associated Drawings. Therefore, it is to be understood that the presently disclosed subject matter is not to be limited to the specific embodiments disclosed and that modifications and other embodiments are intended to be included within the scope of the appended claims.

In some embodiments, the presently disclosed subject matter provides a configurable bottle rack, e.g., wine rack, and method. Namely, a configurable bottle rack is provided that includes a vertical support member having a plurality of through-holes therein. Rods are provided that are designed to pass through the through-holes, wherein each pair of rods can support at least one bottle, e.g., wine bottle.

An aspect of the presently disclosed configurable bottle rack is that the rods can be easily configured in any fashion based on the user's preference. Namely, any number of rods (up to a maximum) can be installed at any desired positions with respect to the vertical support member. In this way, the user determines the number and configuration of bottles, e.g., wine bottles, in the configurable bottle rack.

Another aspect of the presently disclosed configurable bottle rack is that the bottles are held in open air by the vertical support member and rods such that good air circulation is achieved around each bottle.

Yet another aspect of the presently disclosed configurable bottle rack is that the bottles are held in open air by the vertical support member and rods such that the bottle labels can be easily viewed.

Referring now to FIG. 1, FIG. 2, FIG. 3, and FIG. 4 is a perspective view, a front view, a side view, and a cross-sectional view, respectively, of an example of the presently disclosed configurable bottle rack, referred to hereinafter as wine rack 100, according to a first configuration. The bottle rack could be used for other types of bottles besides wine bottles.

The configurable wine rack 100 preferably includes a support member 110 that includes a set of through-holes 112. Namely, the support member 110 is arranged substantially vertical, while each through-hole 112 is arranged substantially horizontal. The wine rack 100 also preferably includes a set of rods 114, wherein one rod 114 can be inserted through each of the through-holes 112. The rods 114 are preferably arranged in pairs, hereafter called rod pairs 116. Each rod pair 116 may hold and support at least one wine bottle.

The support member 110 may be any strong rigid member, such as, but not limited to, a wooden board, plank, or beam; a composite wood board, plank, or beam; a hollow, semi-hollow, or solid metal beam; and the like. The support member 110 is selected to support the weight of multiple wine bottles. FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 show that the support member 110 has a length L, a width W, and a thickness t. The support member 110 can have any length L, width W, and thickness t. In one example, the support member 110 is a standard 2×8 piece of lumber that is intended to be installed from floor to ceiling in a room. In this example, the length L is the distance from floor to ceiling (e.g., about 7-10 feet), the width W is about 7.5 inches, and the thickness t is about 1.5 inches.

Further, each of the rods 114 can be, for example, aluminum rods. Further, each of the rods 114 has a diameter d. Consequently, the diameter of each of the through-holes 112 in the support member 110 substantially corresponds to the diameter d of the rods 114, wherein the through-holes 112 are sized to allow easy but snug fitting of the rods 114. In one example, the diameter d of the rods 114 may be about ½ inch. Rods 114 may be made of solid, semi-solid, or hollow aluminum rods, or of any other suitable material, such as, but not limited to wood, plastic, metal, and the like.

Additionally, FIG. 3 shows that each of the rods 114 has a length L1. Further, when inserted through the support member 110, the portion of each of the rods 114 that is extending on each side of the support member 110 has a length L2. The length L2 is preferably of a length suitably to support a standard wine bottle (e.g., 0.75 liter bottle), or other desired bottle to be supported thereon. Because of the length L2 on each side of the support member 110, each rod pair 116 can hold up to two wine bottles, one on each side of the support member 110 (see FIG. 5).

Continuing the example of the support member 110 being a standard 2×8 piece of lumber, the length L1 of each of the rods 114 may be, in one example, about 15.5 inches. In this example, the length L2 of each of the rods 114 that is extending on each side of the support member 110 may be about 7 inches. Namely, 7 inches (the first length L2 of the rod 114) plus 1.5 inches (the thickness t of support member 110) plus 7 inches (the second length L2 of the rod 114) is equal to 15.5 inches (the length L1 of the rod 114).

In the presently disclosed configurable wine rack 100 there may be one or more rod pairs 116 in each row and there may be multiple rows. In the example shown in FIG. 1, FIG. 2, FIG. 3, and FIG. 4, each row of rods 114 includes two rod pairs 116. In each rod pair 116, FIG. 2 shows that the two rods 114 have an on-center spacing s1. The spacing s1 is set to support a standard wine bottle. In one example, the spacing s1 may be about 2⅜ inches. Further, there is a spacing s2 (on-center of the rods 114) between adjacent rod pairs 116. The spacing s2 can vary; however, in one example, the spacing s2 may be about 1.5 inches. Additionally, there may be multiple rows of rods 114 in the support member 110. Accordingly, there is an on-center distance D between rows of rods 114. The distance D can vary; however, in one example, the distance D may be about 5 inches.

Because the presently disclosed configurable wine rack 100 can provide multiple rod pairs 116 in each row and there can be multiple rows of rod pairs 116, configurable wine rack 100 is a wine rack that is easy for a consumer to assemble and install. Namely, any number of rods 114 (up to a maximum) can be installed at any desired positions with respect to the vertical support member 110.

Referring now to FIG. 5, FIG. 6, and FIG. 7 is a perspective view, a front view, and a side view, respectively, of the configurable wine rack 100 shown in FIG. 1, FIG. 2, FIG. 3, and FIG. 4 holding two wine bottles 200. Namely, in this example, rod pair 116 is installed in the support member 110, and the one rod pair 116 is shown holding two wine bottles 200—a first wine bottle 200 on one side of the support member 110 and a second wine bottle 200 on the other side of the support member 110.

Referring now to FIG. 8, FIG. 9, and FIG. 10 is a perspective view, a front view, and a side view, respectively, of an example of the presently disclosed configurable wine rack 100 according to a second configuration. Namely, in this example, two rod pairs 116 are installed in the support member 110. Accordingly, FIG. 11, FIG. 12 and FIG. 13 show the configurable wine rack 100 of FIG. 8, FIG. 9, and FIG. 10 holding four wine bottles 200—two wine bottles 200 on one side of the support member 110 and two more wine bottles 200 on the other side of the support member 110.

In the example of the presently disclosed configurable wine rack 100 shown in FIG. 1 through FIG. 13, if the length L of the support member 110 is about 8 feet, each row is populated with two rod pairs 116, and there is 19 rows of rods 114, then the total number of wine bottles 200 that can be held is 76 (four per row).

The support member 110 of the configurable wine rack 100 may include any number of the rod pairs 116 per row and may include any number of rows. For example, FIG. 14, FIG. 15 and FIG. 16 show a perspective view, a front view, and a side view, respectively, of an example of the presently disclosed configurable wine rack 100 according to a third configuration. In this example, the width W of the support member 110 is set to allow three rod pairs 116 per row the support member. For example, support member 110 may be a standard 2×12 piece of lumber, with a width W of about 11.5 inches, and a thickness t of about 1.5 inches. In this example, three rod pairs 116 are installed in the support member 110. Accordingly, FIG. 17, FIG. 18 and FIG. 19 show the configurable wine rack 100 of FIG. 14, FIG. 15 and FIG. 16 holding six wine bottles 200—three wine bottles 200 on one side of the support member 110 and three more wine bottles 200 on the other side of the support member 110.

Referring now to FIG. 20 is a perspective view of the presently disclosed configurable wine rack 100 and showing a Cutaway A. Cutaway A shows more details of an example of one rod 114 passing through the support member 110.

Referring now to FIG. 21 is a perspective view of an example of a mounting plate of the presently disclosed configurable wine rack. For example, to support the support member 110 installed, for example, floor to ceiling, a mounting plate 150 may be used on each side of the support member 110, and may be used on one or both ends of the support member 110. For example, one mounting plate 150 securing the lower end of the support member 110 to the floor and another mounting plate 150 (not shown) securing the upper end of the support member 110 to the ceiling. The presently disclosed configurable wine rack 100 is not limited to a floor-to-ceiling configuration. Other configurations are possible, such as, but not limited to, countertop configurations and free-standing floor configurations.

Referring again to FIG. 1 through FIG. 21, configurable wine rack 100 may be provided as a kit. The support member 110 may be shipped to the user as a pre-drilled support member 110 having a number of through-holes 112 drilled there through along with a corresponding number of rods 114 and one or more mounting plates 150 as may be needed for the user's specific mounting configuration. The user may insert any number of rods 114 at any through-hole 112-locations. Namely, in the presently disclosed configurable wine rack 100, the rods 114 (and rod pairs 116) can be easily configured in any fashion based on the user's preference, wherein any number of rods 114 (up to a maximum) can be installed at any desired through-hole 112-locations of the vertical support member 110. In this way, the user determines the number and configuration of wine bottles in the configurable wine rack 100.

Further, in the presently disclosed configurable wine rack 100, the wine bottles 200 are held in open air by the vertical support member 110 and the rods 114 such that good air circulation is achieved around each bottle and such that the wine bottle labels can be easily viewed.

Following long-standing patent law convention, the terms “a,” “an,” and “the” refer to “one or more” when used in this application, including the claims. Thus, for example, reference to “a subject” includes a plurality of subjects, unless the context clearly is to the contrary (e.g., a plurality of subjects), and so forth.

Throughout this specification and the claims, the terms “comprise,” “comprises,” and “comprising” are used in a non-exclusive sense, except where the context requires otherwise. Likewise, the term “include” and its grammatical variants are intended to be non-limiting, such that recitation of items in a list is not to the exclusion of other like items that can be substituted or added to the listed items.

For the purposes of this specification and appended claims, unless otherwise indicated, all numbers expressing amounts, sizes, dimensions, proportions, shapes, formulations, parameters, percentages, quantities, characteristics, and other numerical values used in the specification and claims, are to be understood as being modified in all instances by the term “about” even though the term “about” may not expressly appear with the value, amount or range. Accordingly, unless indicated to the contrary, the numerical parameters set forth in the following specification and attached claims are not and need not be exact, but may be approximate and/or larger or smaller as desired, reflecting tolerances, conversion factors, rounding off, measurement error and the like, and other factors known to those of skill in the art depending on the desired properties sought to be obtained by the presently disclosed subject matter. For example, the term “about,” when referring to a value can be meant to encompass variations of, in some embodiments, ±100% in some embodiments ±50%, in some embodiments ±20%, in some embodiments ±10%, in some embodiments ±5%, in some embodiments ±1%, in some embodiments ±0.5%, and in some embodiments ±0.1% from the specified amount, as such variations are appropriate to perform the disclosed methods or employ the disclosed compositions.

Further, the term “about” when used in connection with one or more numbers or numerical ranges, should be understood to refer to all such numbers, including all numbers in a range and modifies that range by extending the boundaries above and below the numerical values set forth. The recitation of numerical ranges by endpoints includes all numbers, e.g., whole integers, including fractions thereof, subsumed within that range (for example, the recitation of 1 to 5 includes 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5, as well as fractions thereof, e.g., 1.5, 2.25, 3.75, 4.1, and the like) and any range within that range.

Although the foregoing subject matter has been described in some detail by way of illustration and example for purposes of clarity of understanding, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that certain changes and modifications can be practiced within the scope of the appended claims. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A bottle rack, comprising: a. a support member; b. through-holes formed through the support member; and c. sets of support rods extending horizontally through the through-holes such that a portion of the support rods extend a distance outward from opposing faces of the support member, and wherein each set of support rods comprise two horizontally adjacent support rods.
 2. The bottle rack of claim 1 further comprising at least one mounting plate configurable to secure the support member to at least one mounting surface.
 3. The bottle rack of claim 2 wherein the at least one mounting surface comprises at least one of a floor, a ceiling, a wall, and a countertop.
 4. The bottle rack of claim 1 wherein the through-holes comprise a diameter substantial equal to or slightly greater than a diameter of the support rods.
 5. The bottle rack of claim 1 wherein a diameter of the through-holes are configured to hold the support rods inserted therethrough in place via a friction fit.
 6. The bottle rack of claim 1 wherein an on-center spacing between the two adjacent support rods of a set of support rods is configured to support a standard wine bottle.
 7. The bottle rack of claim 1 wherein an on-center spacing between the two support rods of a set of support rods is 2⅜ inches.
 8. The bottle rack of claim 1 wherein an on-center spacing between neighboring support rods of adjacent sets of support rods is 1.5 inches.
 9. The bottle rack of claim 1 wherein the through-holes are configured in one or more of rows and columns.
 10. The bottle rack of claim 9 wherein an on-center distance between vertically adjacent rows of support rods is 5 inches.
 11. The bottle rack of claim 2 wherein the at least one mounting plate is attached to at least one end of the support member.
 12. The bottle rack of claim 2 wherein the mounting plate is configured to secure the support member in a vertical orientation.
 13. A method of installing a bottle rack, the method comprising: a. mounting a support member on or to a mounting surface, the support member comprising through-holes formed therethrough; and b. attaching sets of support rods, comprise two horizontally adjacent support rods, to the support member via the through-holes such that the support rods extend horizontally through the through-holes such that a portion of the support rods extend a distance outward from opposing faces of the support member.
 14. The method of claim 13 wherein the support member is mounted to the mounting surface via a mounting plate.
 15. A kit, comprising: a. a support member; and b. sets of support rods, wherein each set of support rods comprise two horizontally adjacent support rods.
 16. The kit of claim 15 further comprising a mounting plate.
 17. The kit of claim 15 wherein the support member comprises a number of through-holes formed therethrough, the through-holes having a diameter sized to accommodate the support rods.
 18. The kit of claim 17 wherein the support rods of the sets of support rods comprise a length such that when positioned in the through-holes a portion thereof extends outward from each opposing face of the support member.
 19. The kit of claim 18 wherein the portion of the support rods that extend outward from each opposing face of the support member is of a sufficient length to support a standard wine bottle in a horizontal position thereon. 